Family Of Oddballs
by GenesisFennec
Summary: Growing up as an orphan, Apollo never would have imagined winding up with a family like this. Twenty years later, and Apollo loves his own little family, even if they drive him insane. (Oneshot, bad summary.)


(AN: I binged a bunch of sad Apollo fics and I wanted to write something happy, or at least bittersweet, so here ya go. Witness my writing power at midnight. First fic, please review!)

Apollo knew he would never find his family.

He lived his life in relative solitude. Apollo never really had a family he could call his own, and never really clicked with anyone. When Clay came into his life, he finally felt that loneliness subside. When the two separated to follow their dreams, Apollo drifted alone again. He looked up to Kristoph as a mentor, his only companion, but Kristoph failed to support him emotionally. It was his role to teach, not to support him.

Then came Phoenix.

At first, Apollo thought Mr. Wright was quite like Kristoph, except a bit more poor, and a lot less intimidating.

He enjoyed the bond Mr. Wright and him had.

He was comfortable with it- after all, he was used to it.

Yet, he still felt his throat get tight when Trucy talked to Phoenix as a father, and wondered… How could anyone want a father? Someone looming over them every second, telling them what to do… Nobody really needs that emotional attachment. It just makes things difficult. So, Apollo kept on, thinking he was content, until late one night.

It was roughly midnight. Apollo was staying very late at the agency, doing paperwork. Phoenix was sleeping on the couch. He insisted on keeping Apollo company. Trucy was back at the apartment, sleeping. The red lawyer was exhausted- he didn't know if it was the hard day getting to him, or maybe just the fact it was way too long of a day, but he felt quite melancholic. Being alone with paperwork, working by the light of a cheap lamp and the moon, silence only being broken by the shuffling of papers… He had too much time to think.

Apollo had been quite dismal ever since Kristoph was convicted, but he was good at hiding it from the agency. Even though Justice had nailed the coffin shut, the thought of the only man he had trusted in a while being a murderer was a painful one.

Apollo missed Clay. He missed friendship. He wanted these bonds, but he wanted to be alone, a living contradiction. Apollo began to cry softly, burying his face into his jacket sleeves. What was he to do? Who to trust? He had nobody. He had no family, no friends anymore, the only person he looked up to was a murderer… Slowly, he began to lose it, sobbing onto his clothes and the table, making sure not to get his papers wet.

"...Apollo?" A tired grunt came from the couch. "Apollo, are you crying?" Phoenix sat up, his mouth a concerned frown, and his eyes a confused haze.

Apollo inwardly cursed himself. Phoenix was a really light sleeper, Apollo's sobbing probably woke him up. "You can hear the sobbing, what do you think?!" Apollo blurted out, a sharpness to his voice that he barely knew existed.

"Woah, calm down. What's wrong, bud? Talking it out'll make you feel better, I promise." Phoenix scooted forward, his laid-back eyes now focused intently on Apollo.

Apollo didn't like the attention. "Mr. Wright, it's alright, really. I-I didn't mean to lash out." He sighed, returning to his paperwork.

Wright stood up, standing next to Apollo. "No, it's not alright. What's up?"  
Apollo decided that he'd open up a little bit, if only to get Phoenix off of his back. "I'm just feeling a little lonely, I guess. It's no problem."

Phoenix nodded thoughtfully, furrowing his brow. "It'll be alright, 'pollo. You'll be fine."  
That just made Apollo cry harder.

"Woah, woah, is it something I said? I'm sorry." Phoenix spoke softly.

"No, no, it's just…" Apollo couldn't finish, he was crying too hard. Phoenix rubbed Apollo's back sympathetically.

"Shh, just calm down. We can talk about this when you're ready. I'll finish the paperwork. Just calm down and get to bed, okay?" Phoenix's voice was kind and understanding, like… like…

A parent.

Apollo calmed down quickly, thanking Mr. Wright and leaving.

Over the next few weeks, he looked at Mr. Wright and Trucy in a new perspective, and got close with them, something he hadn't done in a long time. Trucy always asked him for help on homework, Mr. Wright gave whatever he could financially to help Apollo keep rent.

The day Apollo found out Trucy was his half-sister, he expected himself to be surprised, confused, weirded out, but… He didn't feel any of those things. Nothing changed.

Then, he realized.

Family didn't have to be connected by blood.

Years passed, and Athena joined the group, her friendly nature making her welcoming.

Then, it happened.

Apollo thought he was better, that he regained his trust in others, for the sake of his clients and his odd family, but when he felt that doubt nagging at the back of his mind, that Athena murdered Clay, he thought he had relapsed, that he never could trust again.

Maybe she would just never be part of the family.

Months passed.

Apollo felt himself becoming more like Kristoph, and he hated it, so much.

Athena was found not guily.

However, Apollo felt guilty as all hell.

When he learned about Athena's past, her murdered mother and missing father, he instantly felt a pang in his heart, a pang of understanding. She was lonely, too.

He would make it up to her, everything he had done wrong. He would trust her if it was the last thing he did.

So, Athena and Apollo became as close as anyone else in the agency.

Years passed. Quite a few years. Trucy was graduating from high school, and the whole agency was excited. Phoenix was very proud of his little girl, praising her about making it through school.

It was a family only graduation, Apollo read online. No friends. Disappointed, he broke the news to Phoenix.

"Mr. Wright, Athena and I won't be able to attend the graduation. It's supposed to be family only." Apollo broke the news, sighing.

"What's the problem with that? You two are practically family. I've forgotten what the agency and my apartment looked like without you two hanging around them all the time." He chuckled. "Apollo, we're family enough. A bit odd, but a family nonetheless. You and Athena are both coming to graduation."  
It was then that Apollo knew that he had found his family.


End file.
